PHOENIX (Reuters) - A former supervisor in Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio’s human smuggling unit said on Tuesday that the controversial lawman was responsible for disobeying a court’s order that effectively shut down his high-profile immigration sweeps.

Arpaio, who bills himself as “America’s toughest sheriff”, attended the opening day of hearings to determine if he and four others should be held in civil contempt for violating court orders in a 2007 racial profiling case.

Sergeant Brett Palmer told the U.S. District Court in Phoenix that his efforts to push for deputies to be trained to comply with the court’s order had been obstructed by Arpaio’s stance and the immigration crackdowns continued.

Asked why he was rebuffed, Palmer said “it was contrary to the goals and the objectives of the sheriff.”

The 82-year-old Arpaio, who heads the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office, had no comment about the allegations made against him when asked during a break in the proceedings.

Palmer also said the prevailing rules at the sheriff’s office were simple and direct.

“That it’s our duty to make the sheriff look good to the media and the public,” Palmer said when questioned by plaintiff attorney Cecillia Wang.